This species is distinguished by the following characters: moderately long and narrowly rounded snout; oblique and blade-like upper anterior teeth are coarsely serrated, lateral margin deeply notched, with several large and smooth basal cusplets; lower anterior teeth are narrower, slightly oblique, with lateral margins notched and usually several smooth basal cusplets; total tooth row counts 24-26/23-25, or 47-51; interdorsal space with ridge on midline, 18.0-23.1% TL; moderately tall and slightly falcate first dorsal fin, its origin just anterior to pectoral-fin free rear tip, length 14.8-17.3% TL, 1.5-1.9 times height, inner margin 2.0-2.8 in base; a much smaller second dorsal fin, broadly triangular, height 28-37% of first dorsal-fin height, origin about opposite to anal-fin origin; falcate anal fin, its height 0.9-1.4 times second dorsal height, base 0.9-1.2 times second dorsal-fin base; body colour pale brownish to grey dorsally, whitish ventrally; second dorsal fin with a black blotch on upper one to two thirds of fin, not extending onto upper surface of body and well defined from ground colour; other fins are plain or with pale outer margins; total vertebral counts 134-147; monospondylous precaudal counts 42-50; diplospondylous precaudal counts 22-33; diplospondylous caudal counts 64-73; precaudal counts 67-76 (Ref. 89954).